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Singapore NEWater
'NEWater ' The NEWater has got to be one of Singapore’s most important innovations in the country’s history. Labelled as the 3rd national tap of the country, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for NEWater at first. The idea of turning used water into clean drinking water did not appeal to many Singaporeans at first. Certain religious groups also raised concerns, as the NEWater would be supplied to all homes. I personally think that NEWater is very important. For now, Singapore still import water from neighboring Malaysia and the contract expires at 2061. Why I say NEWater is important because anything can happen between us and Malaysia and they might decide to cut the supply off. In the year 2000, the first NEWater plant was completed and there are now 4 NEWater plants in Singapore. Today, NEWater meets 30% of Singapore total water demand and the percentage is expected to increase further by 2060. NEWater is one of Singpore’s success stories as it was developed and created right here in our country. Using the reverse osmosis method, NEWater surpasses the World Health Organisation requirement, which goes to show how high its quality and reliability is. Not resting on their laurels, the Public Utilities Board conducts rigorous tests on NEWater every 2 years. World renowned experts in engineering, water chemistry, toxicology and microbiology are brought in to conduct tests to ensure its quality remain at the highest. Today, NEWater is supplied to most homes and industries in Singapore including mine and it is safe to say that all doubts about it are vanished now. Our 2nd National Tap Imported Water Singapore and Malaysia have been signed four agreements to regulate the supply of water from Johor to Singapore. The first is signed in 1927 and which is not longer in force and the others agreement are signed in 1961, 1962 and 1990 respectively. The first agreement expired in August 2011 and the second agreement will expire in 2061. A country with only 13 reservoirs to collect rainwater is definitely insufficient to supply water for 3.5 million peoples during 1990s. So, Singapore has to import water from neighbor country, Malaysia in order to solve the water shortage problems. About 40% of Singapore water came from Malaysia. A business dealing in such a way is able to mingle relationship between two countries in the first place. However, there are some conflicts have happened during the past few years when Malaysia imported water to Singapore. Sometimes, Malaysia used the water supply as a tool to pressure Singapore politically. Hence, Singapore was aware that they should not rely on the water supply from Malaysia and they also want to reduce the amount of water supply from Malaysia. As such, Singapore started invests in research and development for water industry. Development of NEWater is another milestone for water industry in Singapore. NEWater is high-grade of reclaimed water which is produced from treated used water that is further purified by using advanced technology. Besides that, Singapore has also invested in desalination plant and some new reservoirs are being built up in certain area in Singapore. Through the effort of Singapore over the years, Singapore has become more capable in sustaining of water supply. Singapore is not necessary to rely on importation for half of their consumption because they have been built up their own water supply infrastructure. Water is a necessity for everyone so I hope Singapore can maximize the efficiency of the water supply system while assure to improve our quality of life.